Sunday, March 16, 2014

I have posted links on Facebook recently to stories that show acts of conduct unbecoming a Police Officer. For
the observant, you will know that I continually post links about what I
consider to be abuses of power, whether in the presidency, other
political entities, or otherwise. I'm an equal opportunity
reporter of abuses. Police are not exempt in this. I personally have
nothing against law enforcement officers in general. I have known
several and still know some---all of whom have been and are outstanding
men. I have had brief run-ins with the other kind though—those who go
into law enforcement for the love of power.

Considering
all that, within law enforcement there are far too many incidences of
mistaken shootings in which the officer mistakes a cane or a wallet for a
gun. Nearly daily we see examples of brutality, and though a case may
be made for some violence being warranted (I dislike the news media who
only show the beatings and not what led up to the beatings. That too
does not tell the full story) in far too many incidences, it is used
inappropriately.

This is the Law Enforcement Oath of Honor:

On
my honor, I will never betray my badge, my integrity, my character, or
the public trust. I will always have the courage to hold myself and
others accountable for our actions. I will always uphold the
constitution, and will remain loyal to my community and the agency I
serve.

Let me first say
that I understand the challenges of being under pressure. I understand
the danger that some suspects are to police officers. That being said,
there is never an excuse for a police officer to shoot an innocent
person. Rule number one in gun safety is to not even put your finger on the trigger until you know at what you're shooting.
I'm thinking that cops violate this rule frequently and probably for
their own safety. But their own safety is not the reason they should be
involved in law enforcement. Their job is to protect the public. How
does shooting someone in error protect the public?

A
big issue is the attitude that “it's a war out there.” If it's a war,
then casualties enemy and “friendlies” should be expected. This is not
the proper approach.

I'm thinking that unless someone is really willing to risk their own
life to protect the public, they shouldn't be doing the job. It should
not be the public's lives that are at risk because someone failed to
obey the first rule of gun safety in order to keep themselves from
getting shot. Of course, an officer doesn't want to leave his or her
children fatherless or motherless. So because of that, it's okay to be
trigger happy? What about the innocent person who just got killed
because of you? Don't you think their children need their father or
mother?

So if they really want
to go into law enforcement, they should go into it with the realization
that they need to protect the public, even if their own lives are in
jeopardy. If not, they should find another line of work.

My
next issue involves another point in which I think many (but not all)
law enforcement officers are breaking their oath, and that's the phrase
“I will always uphold the Constitution”. Consider the recent law that
was passed in Connecticut, which turned gun-owners who failed to
register their semi-automatic guns into felons overnight. Officers were
willing to go into people's homes to confiscate their guns, a clear
violation of the Constitution they are sworn to uphold.

What
is going to happen if there is some general order from the President to
confiscate guns? How many officers are going to march in lock-step with
such laws and go ahead and try and carry out the confiscations? How
many, if ordered to, will carry out such laws just because they have
been ordered and have the power to do so? I'm encouraged by county
sheriffs in various states around the country who refuse to enforce gun
control laws. These individuals take seriously their edict to uphold the
Constitution. We can only hope that that is the majority opinion
amongst law enforcement officers and administrators.

The
misuse of power has long been a problem among law enforcement officers,
including, but not limited to, adding more violations on to speeding
tickets because someone is a smart aleck. Adding on violations because
one can is just the smallest example of the abuse of power. Everyone
with power has the potential to abuse it. Abuse of power amongst law
enforcement is why some people come to dislike police officers. Think of
someone you know who was abused or molested as a child. Does that
person not have a reason to hate the abuser? The same thing goes for law
enforcement officers who abuse their power, especially in its most
extreme forms, such as unwarranted tazing, beatings, and shootings.

Now
I've said this because I post a lot of links about such abuses. I also
post good stories about police officers when I find them. I know and
love some fine police officers to whom I am grateful for the hard work
they do, but I hope that these good people will not turn a blind eye to
the abusers within their ranks, or to the oath breakers who walk among
them. I have a pretty good idea that those I know will not do so. I
hope that they believe that their main job is to protect the public, not
themselves. I hope most of all, that those who have been
entrusted by the public to protect them, will do so, whether it's
protecting them from criminals, or protecting them from their own
government who is violating the Constitution. They have sworn an oath to
do so.

Saturday, March 01, 2014

So,
I've been going back over my story Last
Stand at Cibola, and I
can see some really well-written sections. I'm not trying to brag,
but maybe I'm not as far away from that million word level as I
thought I was. That's really a step up from where I was a while back when I reread my first novel Gateway to Fear. I had thought I had done a good job with that, and there were some places in it where I did, but overall, it sucked. I could rewrite it, and maybe will some day, but for now, it's onward and upward.

I think the hardest part for me is organizing the plot
into a story that makes sense on every level. My characters have
complicated back stories and relationships and it's difficult to keep
all of that straight. I'm using a program called “Scrivener” now
and I think it's going to help in the organizing process, though
there's definitely a learning curve associated with it. If we as writers keep plugging away though, eventually we will write something good.